Dollars at the ballot box: What you'll be asked to pay for

Oct. 3, 2013

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How to vote

The Nov. 5 election will be conducted by mail ballot, which may be returned by mail to the Larimer County Clerk’s Office or dropped off at various locations. • Ballots will be sent to voters beginning the week of Oct. 14 • Ballots are due to the clerk’s office by 7 p.m. on Election Day • Return postage on a ballot is 66 cents • For information on ballot drop-off locations and hours, visit www.larimer.org/elections.

Key dates

• Oct. 15: mail ballots start going out to voters • Oct. 29: last day to apply to receive a mail-in ballot by mail • Nov. 1: last day to apply for a mail-in ballot if it is to be picked up at a county clerk’s office • Nov. 5: Election Day; polling locations open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

With Election Day just a month away, it’s time for voters to learn what’s on the ballot and how they may be affected by its various elements.

Here are the basics on the issues and offices to be decided in the Nov. 5 election, which in Larimer County will be conducted by mail ballot.

Amendment 66

Two statewide measures would impact the amount of taxes Coloradans pay. One would affect anyone who pays income tax; the other those who use recreational marijuana.

Amendment 66 would change how funding to support public education is collected and distributed.

It would increase tax revenue by $950 million in its first year by raising the state income tax from 4.63 percent to 5 percent on the first $75,000 of a household’s taxable income and to 5.9 percent on income above that threshold.

About 68 percent of state households would see their income taxes increase by 8 percent; the other 32 percent of households would see higher increases, according to state projections.

The measure would require that 43 percent of revenue from state sales, income and excise taxes be used to fund education. The average funding level for the last 13 years has been 46 percent.

Funding would be distributed to school districts on a per-pupil basis with adjustments to place more emphasis on students who are at risk for academic failure, such as those from low-income households.

Supporters of the amendment say it would restore funding to public schools that was lost in recent years through budget cuts and would provide taxpayers with accountability on how increased funding affects student achievement.

Opponents say the amendment is an unnecessary tax increase that would impede the state’s economy and would result in taxpayers paying more to support education with no guarantee of academic improvement.

Proposition AA

Proposition AA would impose a 15 percent state excise tax on the wholesale price of marijuana when it is first sold and a 10 percent tax on retail sales of marijuana and marijuana products. The taxes would be in addition to the state’s 2.9 percent sales tax.

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Amendment 64, which state voters approved last year, legalized the possession and sale of recreational marijuana by those aged 21 or older. The amendment calls for directing up to $40 million a year collected from an excise tax on marijuana to fund school construction.

Supporters of the proposition say revenue from the taxes are needed to fund programs that would enforce regulations on retail marijuana and discourage marijuana use by minors.

Opponents say the taxes are too high and would undercut a regulated retail model for marijuana while driving consumers back to the underground market.

Local matters

• In Fort Collins, the only city-related ballot measure is Issue 2A, which calls for a five-year moratorium on the oilfield practice of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, while studies are conducted on fracking’s impact on public health and property values.

Supporters say fracking could be harmful to air and water quality and should be better understood before it is allowed within city limits or on city-owned land, such a natural areas in unincorporated Larimer County.

Opponents say fracking is safe and the moratorium is not needed since the process is already banned in Fort Collins, except when an oil and gas development company reaches an operating agreement with the city that carries strict environmental regulations.

• Larimer County’s lone ballot measure is Issue 1A, which asks voter approval to use existing revenue from a sales tax dedicated to courthouse facilities to replace the county’s aged office building in downtown Loveland.

County voters approved the sales tax in 1997 and it ended in 2012. About $8 million is available to remodel the building, but county officials say the money could be more effectively used to build a new facility that would be more comfortable and less expensive to operate.

• Poudre School District is holding an election for three seats on its board of education. Each post carries a four-year term. The candidates are: